This article outlines how transactions such as invoices and bills are exported from Alvys to QuickBooks Desktop (QBD), including how subsidiaries, customers, vendors, and drivers are linked. It also covers how exported transactions can be modified and updated while maintaining data integrity.

When transactions are exported to QuickBooks Desktop, they are initially displayed on the Alvys Error Transactions page. It is important to note that appearing on this page does not necessarily signify a failure. Instead, these transactions are held in a queued (-) state, which acts as a staging area before the data transfer is finalized. During this interval, no error messages will be displayed because the system is simply waiting for the QuickBooks Web Connector to run.

The actual export occurs only when the QuickBooks Web Connector runs. Unlike a direct push, Alvys holds the data until the Web Connector initiates a request to pull those specific transactions into your QuickBooks Company file. Once the Web Connector completes its cycle, the transactions will transition from the queued status and clear from the error transactions page.

When setting up the QBD integration, the user normally selects which Alvys subsidiary accounts to connect to the QBD company. This section explains which connected QBD company will receive the exported invoices and/or bills.

The Invoice As field represents the billing subsidiary responsible for issuing the customer invoice. This determines the legal entity name that appears on the invoice. All Accounts Receivable (AR) transactions are exported to the QBD company tied to this subsidiary.

Example: If a load’s Invoice As field is set to Alvys Motor, the invoice exports to the QuickBooks Desktop Company linked to Alvys Motor.

The Tender As field identifies the subsidiary responsible for dispatching the load and paying the carrier. It also determines the trip type:

Carrier bills are exported to the QBD company linked to the subsidiary selected in the Tender As field.

For carriers with dual authority, the operational mode is automatically set based on the Tender As subsidiary. Users can manually update the operational mode to Carrier or Broker, which may affect QBD exports.

Each driver profile has a Subsidiary field representing the subsidiary the driver is tied to. When generating driver statements, the QuickBooks Desktop company receiving the bill depends on the driver’s subsidiary

This section describes how Alvys identifies and links customers and brokers in QuickBooks Desktop (QBD), how new customer records are created when no match is found, and how key accounting fields such as customer names, invoicing details, and payment terms affect invoice exports and data synchronization.

The customer’s External Accounting Name is used to identify a customer or broker in QuickBooks Desktop (QBD). When exporting an invoice, Alvys first searches for an exact match in QBD using this field.

If a matching customer exists, the invoice is linked to that customer. If no match is found and the External Accounting Name is set on the customer profile, Alvys will automatically create a new customer in QBD using that name. For tenants where the External Accounting Name is not set, Alvys attempts to match using the Customer Name. If no match is found, a new customer is created in QBD using the Customer Name.

It is important to note that the External Accounting Name takes priority. If the External Accounting Name differs from an existing QBD customer name, even if the Customer Name in Alvys matches, Alvys will create a new customer using the External Accounting Name.

The Invoicing Name determines how the customer appears on invoices generated in Alvys; it does not affect the customer record created in QBD.

When creating customers in QBD, Alvys uses the following fields:

Alvys is the source of truth. If a user later updates this information directly in QBD, changes will be overridden the next time an invoice is synced. To ensure consistency, any updates to these fields should always be made within Alvys.

The Payment Terms field specifies the agreed-upon period within which a customer must pay an invoice, calculated from the invoice date. In Alvys, this can be set to any value between 0 and 365 days.

These terms determine the due date on the load as well as the invoice due date exported to QuickBooks Desktop

This section explains how Alvys links carriers and drivers to QuickBooks Desktop (QBD), how vendor records are created when no match is found, and which accounting fields control bill synchronization.

The carrier’s External Accounting Name is used to identify a vendor in QuickBooks Desktop (QBD). When exporting a bill, Alvys first searches for an exact match in QBD using this field.

If a matching vendor exists, the bill is linked to that vendor. If no match is found and the External Accounting Name is set on the carrier profile, Alvys will automatically create a new vendor in QBD using the External Accounting Name. For carriers where the External Accounting Name is not set, Alvys attempts to match using the Carrier Name. If no match is found, a new vendor is created in QBD using the Carrier name.

It is important to note that the External Accounting Name takes priority. If it differs from an existing QBD vendor name, even if the Carrier or Driver Name in Alvys matches, Alvys will create a new vendor using the External Accounting Name.

Drivers, including company drivers and owner-operators, may operate as 1099 drivers. These drivers have additional tax detail fields on their profiles, such as:

When generating driver statements, if these fields are set and the accounting integration is configured to create vendors using 1099 details, Alvys will create the vendor using the tax information (company name and address). If this setting is not enabled, the vendor will be created using the driver’s name.

The Carrier Payment Terms field defines the agreed-upon time frame for paying a carrier. This is configured on the company profile for each subsidiary.

If a driver is associated with a subsidiary that has this payment terms configured, the bill due date will be calculated based on that subsidiary’s terms.

For external carriers, the due date is determined using the Carrier Payment Terms from the company profile of the subsidiary specified in the Tender As field on the trip.

This section provides an overview of the areas within Alvys from which customer invoices can be exported from and the key validations required to ensure successful export to QuickBooks Desktop.

Generating a customer invoice from the Load Details page triggers its export to QuickBooks Desktop. To ensure a successful export, all relevant configurations and data must be verified before the invoice is generated.

Ensure the customer being invoiced is correct. Verify that the External Accounting Name is set correctly for the customer. If no External Accounting Name is configured, ensure the standard customer or broker name exactly matches the customer record in QuickBooks Desktop.

Also verify the customer’s Invoice settings for the subsidiary which is used as the invoiced as subsidiary on the load. The Invoice As subsidiary used on the load must correspond to the subsidiary configured for the QuickBooks Desktop integration, as this determines which QuickBooks company receives the invoice.

Once these conditions are satisfied and the load is in Released status, generating the invoice initiates the export to QuickBooks Desktop.

Once the invoice generation is successful, the transaction is shown on the Error Transactions page until the connector is opened and the updates are pulled into the QuickBooks Desktop company file.

After the connector completes this sync, the invoice can be located by navigating to the Customer Center and selecting the specific customer to view their Transactions tab. Users can filter the list for Invoices and apply date filters to browse the results and confirm the export.

Alternatively, the invoice can be found quickly by using the Find tool (Ctrl + F) and staying on the Simple tab; by selecting Invoice as the transaction type and entering the Alvys Load Number into the Number field, the specific record will appear in the results for immediate access. Note that if a customer has a fleet prefix configured for the load fleet, this prefix will be shown on the load number and will be used as the Invoice Number within QuickBooks. In both cases, the invoice will be properly categorized and visible under the corresponding customer account.

The Batch Invoicing page in Alvys is located under accounting, then Invoice in the left navigation menu or directly at https://app.alvys.com/#/accounting/invoicing.

This page enables users to create invoices for multiple loads across one or more customers simultaneously. Each selected load is processed as an individual invoice, and exporting to QuickBooks Desktop is triggered automatically when the invoices are generated. This approach enables faster and more efficient invoicing while ensuring accurate transaction records for each load.

From the Released tab, select the loads for which you want to generate invoices. Ensure that the selected loads meet the following requirements. The customer being invoiced must be correct. If an External Accounting Name is configured, it must exactly match the corresponding customer record in QuickBooks Desktop. If no External Accounting Name is configured, the standard customer or broker name must match the customer record. The Invoice As subsidiary on each load must be properly configured to export revenue transactions to QBD.

After verifying these details, invoices can be generated using the Generate Invoice option, which creates the invoices and exports them to QuickBooks Desktop. Alternatively, the Create and Send option generates the invoices, exports them to QuickBooks Desktop, and sends them to the customer according to the invoicing method configured for that customer.

Once invoice generation is successful, the transactions are shown on the Error Transactions page until the connector is opened and the updates are pulled into the QuickBooks Desktop company file. After the connector completes this sync, the invoices are recorded in QuickBooks Desktop under the Customer Center, where users can select the specific customer and navigate to the Transactions tab

Summary invoicing consolidates multiple loads for a customer into a single invoice. The Summary Invoicing page can be accessed from Accounting then Summary Invoicing. For more information on configuring customers for summary invoicing, see https://help.alvys.com/en/articles/12159947-summary-invoicing.

The invoice export is triggered when the consolidated summary invoice is generated, creating a single invoice that reflects the total amount for all loads included. Only customers configured with the summary invoice type will appear when selecting a subsidiary. Ensure that the subsidiary is correct, as this determines the QuickBooks Desktop Company where the invoice will be sent.

On the Summary Invoicing page, from the Loads Not Invoiced tab, select the loads to include and add them to a draft summary invoice. Once the draft is prepared, generating the invoice will create the summary invoice and move the transaction to the Error Transactions page until the connector is opened and the updates are pulled into the QuickBooks Desktop company file.

Once synced, you can locate the consolidated record in the Customer Center or via the Find tool (Ctrl + F) on the Simple tab using the Invoice Number.

This section explains the different methods available in Alvys for exporting bill transactions to QuickBooks Desktop. It covers external carrier bills, carrier settlements, and driver bill exports, including the configuration requirements that determine when and how each bill is exported.

External carrier bills can be exported directly from individual loads based on the configured external accounting settings. The export is triggered when the customer invoice is generated. Before generating the invoice, ensure the correct external carrier is assigned to the trip. The subsidiary selected in the Tender As field must also be verified, as this subsidiary determines where the carrier bill will be sent. The selected subsidiary must be configured to receive carrier bills through the QBD integration.

When an external carrier is assigned and the trip is released to billing, the system evaluates the Generate Carrier Invoice Separately setting.

If this setting is not enabled, the carrier bill is exported automatically when the customer invoice is generated. However, if enabled, the system verifies whether a document of type Carrier Invoice has been uploaded to the trip. If the document is present, the carrier bill export to QuickBooks Desktop will initiate when the customer invoice is generated.

Carrier Invoice number

In Alvys, the carrier invoice number is entered when uploading a document of type Carrier Invoice to a trip. When the carrier bill is exported to QuickBooks Desktop, this number is automatically appended to the memo field. This allows accounting teams to search for, reference, and reconcile carrier bills using the carrier’s original invoice number.

The Carrier Settlements module provides brokers with tools to generate transparent and accurate carrier statements and settlement bills. This page can be accessed from the accounting section of Alvys under Carrier Settlements. Additional details about this module can be found in the Carrier Settlements Help Center Article.

When carrier settlements are used, the carrier bill is exported when a carrier statement is generated. To allow this export, the Carrier Statements External Accounting setting must be enabled for the subsidiary. If this setting is not enabled, no carrier bill will be exported when the statement is generated.

If this setting is enabled and a user generates a customer invoice for an individual load with an external carrier, the carrier bill will not be exported from the load. In this scenario, the system expects the bill to be exported from the Carrier Settlements module when the statement is generated.

If an error occurs while exporting a carrier bill from the Carrier Settlements module, the error details are displayed directly within the module. Carrier statements cannot be re-sent from the Error Transactions page. All corrections must be made within the Carrier Settlements module, and the statement must be regenerated there.

For tenants that use the Carrier Settlements module but prefer carrier bills to export when the carrier invoice is uploaded on the trip, it is recommended not to enable the Carrier Statements external accounting setting. In this configuration, enabling the generate carrier invoice separately setting and uploading the carrier invoice to the trip then generating the customer invoice will trigger the carrier bill export.

Driver bills can be exported either from the legacy Pay Drivers page or from the newer Driver Settlements module. The export behavior depends on the configured driver billing settings.

The recommended configuration is Single Bill Export. When enabled, multiple trips, deductions, and credits included in a driver statement are consolidated into a single bill and exported to QuickBooks Desktop. This approach is ideal for tenants operating on weekly or biweekly pay cycles.

The subsidiary used for exporting driver bills is determined by the subsidiary assigned on the driver profile in Alvys.

For tenants still using the legacy Pay Drivers page, driver statements generated from this page may be reverted from the driver profile.

Reverting a driver statement deletes the corresponding driver bill from QuickBooks Desktop, provided the bill remains open and no payments have been applied.

Driver Settlements replaces the Pay Drivers module and introduces enhancements such as draft statements, predefined pay periods, and bulk actions. Additional details can be found in the Driver Settlements Help Center Article.

For statements generated using the Driver Settlements module, reverting the statement from the Statements tab removes the associated driver bill from QuickBooks Desktop, as long as the bill remains open and no payments have been applied.

In the QBD accounting integration setup shared billing must be enabled on both the Invoice As subsidiary and the Tender As subsidiary. Each subsidiary must also have its own QuickBooks Desktop company connected. If shared billing is not enabled on both sides, intercompany transactions and carrier or vendor bills will not export correctly.

On the load, select:

The subsidiaries must be different for the shared billing logic to apply.

Once dispatch and financial details are complete, release the load so it becomes eligible for invoicing. Ensure all required documents are present on the load before attempting to invoice.

Shared billing export is triggered when the customer invoice is generated.

Invoice As subsidiary (Alvys Motor Company):

Each subsidiary will receive only the transactions applicable to its accounting company. This ensures that revenue, expenses, and intercompany balances remain accurate and properly separated.

Invoice As Subsidiary e.g. Alvys Motor

Tender As Subsidiary e.g. Alvys Motor 2

Once a transaction has been exported from Alvys to QuickBooks Desktop (QBD), all corrections and updates must be made in Alvys and then synchronized to QBD through the regeneration process. Alvys serves as the system of record for all exported accounting transactions. Changes made directly in QBD can result in data inconsistencies and prevent updates from syncing correctly.

This section explains how previously exported transactions can be modified, which changes are supported, and the conditions under which those modifications are allowed.

Previously exported invoices may be modified only while the invoice remains open. In QuickBooks Desktop, an invoice is considered open until a full payment has been applied. Once a payment is fully applied and the sync is complete, the invoice becomes "Closed" in Alvys and no further modifications are permitted. In these situations, Alvys Support must be contacted for assistance.

Invoice updates are typically synchronized by regenerating the customer invoice after changes are made. However, certain fields will update the QBD invoice automatically without requiring you to regenerate the document.

Updates to the following load invoice fields are applied automatically to QuickBooks Desktop without requiring invoice regeneration:

Customer linehaul amount

Customer fuel surcharge

Accessorial charges added, edited, or removed

Invoice Date

To apply these updates, simply make the changes in Alvys, then open the QuickBooks Desktop Connector to pull the updates into your company file. These specific changes will appear immediately after the sync without the need to regenerate the invoice. Please note that any other changes not listed above will still require invoice regeneration to sync correctly.

The customer associated with a load can only be changed while the load is in a status prior to Invoiced (e.g., Queued). This indicates that the invoice has been generated in Alvys but has not yet been submitted to the customer. Once the invoice has been submitted, the load status updates to Invoiced based on the invoicing mode, and the customer cannot be changed directly. In this case, users must contact Alvys Support to revert the load status to queued, allowing the customer to be updated and the invoice regenerated for synchronization with QuickBooks Desktop.

The customer’s name displayed on the exported invoice reflects the External Accounting Name.

Steps to Update the Customer on an Invoice:

In the Load Details section of the load, click the Change Customer button.

Select the correct customer to assign to the load and save the change.

Regenerate the invoice in Alvys.

Open the QuickBooks Desktop Connector and pull in the updates to send the change to your company file.

Open QuickBooks Desktop and confirm that the customer associated with the invoice has been updated correctly.

Fields such as the invoicing address, shipping address, customer email, and customer phone are managed directly within the customer profile in Alvys.

Steps to update customer fields:

Changing the Invoice-As subsidiary and regenerating the invoice will automatically remove the original invoice that was already exported to the connected QBD subsidiary. However, to prevent duplicates, ensure that the original invoice is removed; if not, manually delete it after exporting the updated invoice.

Steps to update the Invoice-As Subsidiary:

In the Load Details section, click the Invoice Customer As dropdown.

Select the correct subsidiary to assign to the load and save the changes.

Regenerate the invoice in Alvys.

Verify in the subsidiary’s QBD Company that the new invoice has been successfully exported.

Delete the original invoice if present in the previous QBD Company to avoid duplicates.

Modifications to summary invoices that have already been exported can be made depending on the scenario.

In Alvys, the only supported mechanism for adding or removing loads from a summary invoice is to revert the summary invoice. A summary invoice can be reverted only when its status is “Processed”. If the invoice has already been Sent or Paid, further modification requires intervention from Alvys Support.

Procedure:

Loads included in a summary invoice can be edited to add charges or make adjustments. Only summary invoices in the following statuses can be regenerated: Pending, Sent, or Partially Paid. If a summary invoice is fully paid, regeneration is not permitted.

Steps to Modify or Add Charges to Loads:

Q: Does appearing on the "Error Transactions" page mean my sync failed?

A: Not necessarily. All transactions are initially held in a queued (-) state on this page. This simply means Alvys is waiting for the QuickBooks Web Connector to run. Once the connector runs its cycle, the transactions will clear from this page and appear in QuickBooks.

Q: How does Alvys match customers and vendors in QuickBooks?

A: Alvys first searches for an exact match using the External Accounting Name. If no match is found, it uses the standard Customer or Carrier Name. If no record exists at all, Alvys will automatically create a new record in QuickBooks using the External Accounting Name (or Name) provided.

Q: Can Alvys pull my customer or vendor list from QuickBooks automatically?

A: No. The integration is push-only. You must manually enter the name in Alvys to define the link. If Alvys cannot find a match in your QuickBooks file when the Web Connector runs, it will automatically create the customer or vendor for you.

Q: How do I update customer details like address, email, or phone after an export?

A: Update the customer profile in Alvys first. If the invoice has already been submitted (status "Invoiced"), you must contact Alvys Support to revert it to Queued. Once reverted, Regenerate the invoice and run the Web Connector to push the new contact details to QuickBooks.

Q: How do I locate an exported invoice or bill in QuickBooks Desktop?

A: You can use the Find tool (Ctrl + F) and search by the Alvys Load Number in the "Number" field. Alternatively, go to the Customer Center or Vendor Center and look at the "Transactions" tab for that specific profile.

Q: Can I update an invoice after it has been exported to QuickBooks?

A: Yes, provided the invoice is still Open (not fully paid). Changes to linehaul, fuel surcharges, and accessorials sync automatically the next time you run the Web Connector. For other changes, you must Regenerate the invoice in Alvys to push the updates to QuickBooks.

Q: What happens if I change the "Invoice As" subsidiary on a load that was already synced?

A: Regenerating the invoice will attempt to remove the original from the old subsidiary's QuickBooks file and export it to the new one. However, it is a best practice to manually verify and delete the original invoice in the old QuickBooks company file to prevent duplicates.

Q: Can I modify a Summary Invoice after it has been exported?

A: It depends on the change. To add or remove whole loads, you must revert the summary invoice in Alvys and manually delete the old record in QuickBooks. However, to edit charges or details on loads already inside the summary invoice, you can simply update the Load Details page and then Regenerate the summary invoice. This will sync the new totals to QuickBooks as long as the invoice status is not "Paid."

Q: Why isn't my external carrier bill exporting?

A: First, verify the trip is in Brokerage mode (if you have dual authority). Second, if you have Generate Carrier Invoice Separately enabled, the bill will not export until you upload a document categorized as a "Carrier Invoice" to the trip in Alvys.

Q: Does the carrier invoice number appear in QuickBooks?

A: Yes. When you upload a document of type "Carrier Invoice" to a trip in Alvys, that invoice number is automatically appended to the Memo field of the bill created in QuickBooks.

Q: Does Alvys sync payments for Carrier Settlements?

A: No. While carrier bills are exported from the Carrier Settlements module to QuickBooks, payments do not sync back to Alvys automatically. You must record carrier payments manually in Alvys to keep your records balanced.

Q: How does Shared Billing affect my QuickBooks exports?

A: When Shared Billing is active:

Q: What happens if a customer name in Alvys matches a vendor name in QuickBooks?

A: QuickBooks requires unique names across all lists (Customers, Vendors, and Employees). If Alvys tries to create a customer name that already exists as a vendor in your QuickBooks file, the export will fail. You must add a unique identifier (like " - CUST") to one of the names.